Food Delivery App Revenue and Usage Statistics (2021)

Food delivery service has come a long way since the inception of World Wide Waiter(now operating as Waiter.com) in 1995, which was the first real start-up in the segment. The previous decade has seen robust growth in the online food delivery services, with the emergence of apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and GrubHub constituting 80% of the sector's revenue.

Internet reliance, route optimization techniques, and availability of delivery riders made it possible for faster and cheaper deliveries and the low-profit margins helped these agitators to thrive. The lockdown, however, propelled the usage and so revenue of food delivery operators. Although the high-end restaurants and food joints had no in-dine customers, their kitchen was still reachable through the food delivery apps.

The period also saw the arrival of cloud kitchens and many small joint ventures, increasing overall revenue in the sector.

However, the Covid situation may loosen the consolidation of the food delivery apps, and the record-breaking revenues might have been for a short time. Still, its enduring impression is bound to be lasting.

Here we will look primarily at the food delivery app revenue and usage statistics from various sources and analyze the sector on a regional basis with some additional information. These valuable insights and stats may inspire you to get associated with one of them. 

Food Delivery App revenue and usage: Highlights 2021

In 2020 the online food delivery market was valued at 72.1 billion. In the first quarter of the year, the daily downloads of the food delivery apps dropped from 265k to 185k in the US. The reason for the decline was the outbreak of the covid pandemic, food contamination remained an issue, and contactless deliveries could not assure safety.  

Anyway, the recent 2021 reports by Statista and other sources forecast a prosperous future for these apps. The highlights of the reports are:

1. In 2021 the revenue in the online food delivery sector is expected to reach $270.3 billion.
2. The revenue is expected to show a CAGR for 2021-2025 of 10.39%; thus, the market volume becomes $401.3 billion.
3. For 2021, the online food delivery market's largest segment is the platform-to-customer, with a market revenue of $148.35 billion.
4. The average revenue per user(ARPU) is shown to be $157.89 in the online food delivery market in 2021.
5. The 2021 user penetration rate in the sector is at 23.1% 
6. The number of users in the online food delivery sector is figured to be 2.63 billion by 2025.
7. The Chinese market dominates the online food delivery sector, with over $158.9 billion in 2021.

Top food delivery apps

The food delivery apps have the most significant market revenue of around $148.3 billion in the online food delivery sector. While the food delivery apps continued to be the most popular ones, 2020 brought the growth of restaurant-branded apps like McDonald's, Starbucks, or Dominos. Their downloads grew with a rate of 21% to reach 83 million, the fastest in the category.

However, DashDoor solely comprises 57% of the market share in the States. But China's food delivery apps have the highest market penetration of over 650 million users, followed by the US.

DashDoor

1. In 2020 the DashDoor revenue increased by 241%, thus growing from $850 million to $2.9 billion.
2. DashDoor currently comprises 57% of the food delivery market in the US, increasing from 45% in 2020.
3. In 2020 DashDoor scored a valuation of $16 billion. Still, it went public in late 2020, and it roared a market capitalization of over $58 billion in early 2021.
4. In the 3rd quarter of 2021, DashDoor's revenue is estimated at $1.28 billion. This is down compared to last year's peak, but the latter remains well above.
5. The majority of the users are from the US, and its user count is over 80 million.
6. It operates in more than 7000 cities across the US, Canada, Australia, and Japan.

UberEats

1. In 2020 UberEats revenue increased by 152%, thus growing from $1.90 billion to $4.8 billion.
2. The US food delivery market share of UberEats stands at 29%, increasing 4% from FY20 (22%)
3. It is the most preferred food delivery app globally, with gross bookings crossing $30.2 million in 2020. 
4. As per WSJ, UberEats has been valued at $20 billion and its parent company Uber Technologies Inc., at $120 billion. 
5. UberEats MAU is estimated to be 66 million, and each spending is over $220.37.
6. Operates in 6 continents in more than 6000 cities across 45 nations.

Grubhub 

1. Grubhub merged with Seamless in 2013, which increased its revenue three times.
2. The Grubhub revenue increased by 39%, thus generating $1.8 billion in revenue in 2020
3. $8.7 billion value food was sold through Grubhub in 2020 and had 31.4 million active users.
4. However, the company reported a loss of $155 million in 2020
5. In 2020, the US food delivery market share of Grubhub was 18% which dropped to16% in 2021. 
6. Grubhub was valued at $7.1 billion in 2020, but in 2018 its valuation was $12.3 billion.
7. Active in over 4000 cities and associated with 265k restaurants, chiefly operates in the United States.

Postmates 

1. It is estimated that Postmates had generated revenue of over $880 million in 2020.
2. Postmates' worth was $2.6 billion in 2020, as Uber acquired it for $2.65 billion in the same year.
3. The US food market share of Postmates decreased to 8% from previous as it engaged in non-food deliveries. 
4. Postmates carries out over 5 million deliveries per month to its 10 million MAUs.
5. Active in over 4200 cities and associated with 600k merchants across the US, Mexico, and Canada.

Deliveroo

1. Deliveroo revenue increased by 54%, thus generating $1.61 billion in revenue in 2020.
2. In 2020 Deliveroo was valued at $10.2 billion. But in its IPO in March 2021 in London it market value declined by 31% 
3. Deliveroo food delivery market share stands at 27%, declining 2% from last year in the UK but rising 2% in the European market.
4. The FY20 gross transaction value of the company is $5.51 billion.
5. Its user count is over 7.1 million, primarily based in the UK.
6. Deliveroo has an association with 140k merchants and is active in over 800 cities across 12 countries.

Just Eat Takeaway

1. Just Eat Takeaway revenue increased by 61%, thus generating $2.82 billion in revenue in 2020.
2. Just Eat Takeaway and Grubhub together generated a revenue of $4.65 billion, the largest in the western food delivery market, after Takeaway acquired Grubhub in 2020.
3. Just Eat Takeaway's losses amounted to $174.7 million in FY20
4. The company's UK food delivery market share is 45% increasing from the previous FY.
5. Combined 2020 orders recorded were 588 million almost twice year on year.
6. In 2020 the combined MAUs were 60 million, making the GMV $14.9billion.
7. Combinedly active in 22 countries and has an association with 244k restaurants.

Meituan Dianping

1. During Q2 2021, Meituan generated total revenue of $6.76 billion, a year-on-year increase of 94.6%.
2. Meituan profits were $371.6 million during the period, a year-on-year increase of 95.2%.
3. Meituan alone comprises 
4. The Chinese food delivery app has 62 million monthly active users as of 2021.
5. In the quarter, the gross transaction value of the Meituan food delivery business increased by 59.5% year on year to $27.1 billion.
6. Meituan solely dominates two-thirds of China's food delivery market.
7. It only operates in China.

Other food delivery services include Eleme, another Chinese food delivery service with 200 million active customers. Jumia Food is an African food delivery app derived from its parent company Jumia and has a value of $1 billion. iFood is the most popular food delivery app in Brazil, responsible for 70% of online takeaways. In India, Zomato, a homegrown app, is the most popular on-demand food delivery service.

US Food delivery app market

1. Food delivery app market revenue has risen by 204% in the last five years, increasing $26.5 billion in 2020.
2. The US food delivery app users count over 111 million. Although before 2015, Grubhub had the highest MAUs, they shifted to newer food delivery services by the latter of the decade.
3. In 2016 Grubhub had a 70% food delivery market share in the US, which receded to 16% in 2021
4. Whereas, DoorDash's US market share is 57%, followed by Uber Eats 26%.
5. The projected food delivery app revenue is expected to increase as this decade rolls by, and by 2025 it is projected to be $42 billion.

UK Food delivery app market 

1. The 2020 UK food delivery market revenue was $5.9 billion, growing almost 127% in the last five years
2. The food delivery app users increased by 82.3% from 2015, in which millions of people used them during the pandemic. However, there are 24.5 million food delivery app users in the UK.
3. The UK food delivery market was dominated by Just Eat Takeaway. Their combined share was 45%, followed by UberEats - 27%, Deliveroo - 26%, and Dominos - 3%.
4. The projected UK delivery app revenue is expected to increase by 59% by 2025 from 2020 to $9.4 billion.

EU Food delivery app market

1. European markets lagged when these on-demand food delivery services initially cracked the US and the UK markets.
2. The food delivery app revenue was $18.9 billion in 2020, increasing from $6.6 billion in 2015.
3. As the platform for customer apps like UberEats and Deliveroo was launched in the EU, the user count increased to 150 million.
4. Just Eat commands 42% of the European food delivery market share, followed by the platform-to-customer apps with Deliveroo - 23% and UberEats - 20%.
5. The projected food delivery app revenue is expected to be $29.1 billion in 2025.   

China Food delivery app market

1. China has seen phenomenal growth in the food delivery market headed by Meituan Dianping and Alibaba's Eleme, controlling over 90% of the food deliveries in the country.
2. Over the last five years, China's food delivery app revenue has grown by sixteen times to $51.2 billion in 2020.
3. Meituan Dianping and Eleme each generate revenue of over $7 billion.
4. There are 650 million users of these apps, overtaking other giants.
5. Meituan Dianping holds a 65% market share in China's food delivery market, and Eleme combined with Baidu Waimai and Koubei have over 50% market share.
6. The projected app revenue is expected to be twice by 2025 to $100 billion.

Conclusion

The Covid pandemic propelled the revenue and usage of food delivery apps, creating a pool of employability in the sector. Though delivery riders and workers are to return as the restaurants and food joints are opening, the sector may slow down as is evident in the Q3 of 2021 revenue for DashDoor. 

Many young players are yet to join the international market. Homegrown food delivery apps like iFood in Brazil and Zomato in India provide variety to customers as they are running small as well as big kitchens. Even restaurant-branded apps like Domino, Starbucks, and Mcdonald's would also grow in the next few years. 

Thus, it will help to overcome the international monopoly of Uber Eats and other top food delivery apps. Chinese giants like Alibaba, Tencent, and Didi may find new ground in the west in the coming years. Nevertheless, there is always space in such a vast market and new acquisitions and investments await in the segment. 
AppsRhino is an on-demand mobile app delivery company that specializes in building food delivery apps. Contact AppsRhino to get a ready-to-launch and fully customized food delivery app.

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